Antim Panghal wins bronze, opens India’s tally at Worlds

Zagreb, September 18 — Indian wrestler Antim Panghal secured a bronze medal in the women’s 53 kg freestyle category at the 2025 World Wrestling Championships, handing India its first medal of the tournament. Panghal defeated Sweden’s U23 World Champion Emma Jonna Malmgren by a wide 9-1 score in the bronze medal match, bouncing back strongly after her semifinal loss.

The 21-year-old from Haryana, who had experienced a disappointing exit at the 2024 Paris Olympics, showed composure and tactical maturity, particularly in the latter stages of the match

This marks Panghal’s second World Championship bronze (her first was in 2023) and makes her only the second Indian woman wrestler — after Vinesh Phogat — to earn multiple World Championship medals

With this win, Panghal ensured that India’s medal-winning streak at the World Championships, which has been ongoing since 2018, continued.

Despite the setback at the semi-final round, Panghal’s resilience and aggressive wrestling in the bronze match have drawn praise from coaches and experts, who say the medal could mark a turning point in her senior career

India’s Greco-Roman wrestlers, however, failed to make an impact on the day, and no further medals were added to the tally

As Antim Panghal prepares to return to India, the focus will be on how she builds on this performance ahead of major competitions, including next year’s Olympics and continental championships.